The great adventure of the Australian road trip – nothing but the open road and some incredible spots to stop at en route.
Day 1: The Great Ocean Road and Mount Gambier
Words can’t really do this road justice…rounding the first bend to hit the spectacular scenes of the coast was just jaw dropping. To only get better once we got out of the car as we approached the Twelve Apostles to see the dramatic coastline drop away from us revealing the most breathtaking collection of limestone stacks I have ever seen. We had THE most perfect weather for it too, even the pictures don’t do justice to how blue everything was…
Our first stop off for the night was Mount Gambier, just over the border into South Australia from Victoria. A five hour drive (ish) in either direction will get you to Melbourne or Adelaide…I’m starting to comprehend just how big Australia is! Mount Gambier is known for it’s volcanic landscape with some more incredible geological wonders to behold including the Blue Lake – a crater lake from the dormant volcano that is the towns water source which turns bright, bright blue during the summer months. Sink holes were also a pretty common feature of the town too!
I even managed to find a couple of local wines. Mount Gambier is Australia’s newest official wine region, on the slopes of the dormant volcano the region offers cool-climate wines from limestone soils.
The Blue Lake at Mount Gambier
Day 2: The Coonawarra Wine Region
The Coonawarra is in the heart of South Australia’s Limestone Coast about an hour further along from Mount Gambier. The Limestone Coast is the largest limestone outcrop in the world and is ideal for wine…vines LOVE limestone. But the Coonawarra is also famed for its terra rossa soils which run along a cigar-shaped strip less than 30km long.
There are approximately 25 cellar doors in this region, many within walking or cycling distance. Cabernet Sauvignon has to be my favourite red grape variety and this is the flagship variety of the Coonawarra. Given it is at least a 4 hour drive to the closest major city (Adelaide) this wine region is much loved by local South Australians but is well, well worth the trip from further afield – the wines were outstanding. I did my homework on places to visit, just limiting myself to four this trip…we left with a much lighter wallet and a much heavier car. Read more about our winery tour here (link to be uploaded very soon!). I will certainly be back.
There is also a little hidden gem in the small town of Penola in the form of a local, michelin star quality restaurant. Pipers of Penola – the son of the owner’s of Bowen Estate wines is the chef with his wife creating a fantastic atmosphere front of house. The food was outstanding, with local wines at excellent prices. I cant remember the last time I sat down in a formal restaurant with white table cloths and four courses (thanks Covid) but this was spectacular – Wagyu beef carpaccio, followed by Seafood King George Whiting and clams in a divine bouillabaisse, a roasted apple turnover and crème brulee icecream (yes crème brulee icecream – my grandma would have loved it!) and some cheese to round it off…I rolled out of there!
Day 3: Robe – Seaside Town and Seafood Extravaganza
I had no expectations of Robe, until we got to Coonawarra, where we were given so many recommendations and everyone was raving about it! It’s an hour on from Coonawarra, 3.5 hours from Adelaide and is a gorgeous beachside town with a stunning beach and lovely local restaurants, cafes and bars. It is also incredibly close to Kingston, the home of South Australian rock lobster so the fresh seafood is to die for…we certainly indulged!
Sails at Robe seafood platter plus a side of rock lobster…how it started and how it ended.
Next stop the beautiful Adelaide Hills for some festive R&R…
